Chapter 4 — I was taken to the palace as a substitute for the dead princess

I was immediately thrown next to the pillar.

“Don't rush.”

“The princess just woke up, your soul has not yet dissipated.”

I was stunned.

“What do you mean?”

The Taoist stepped in front of me and lowered his voice.

"Borrowing a body to restore one's soul is not stealing a body."

“If the princess wants to completely hold your body firmly, then you must let your soul, who is the owner of this body, witness with her own eyes that she continues to live.”

“The longer you look at it, the deeper your resentment will be, the stronger your soul will be.”

"Wait until seven days later, when all your resentment is absorbed by her, then from then on no one will remember Tham Dien anymore."

I stared at him.

“Does the Emperor know about this?”

The Taoist smiled.

“Of course your Majesty knows.”

“So... Master Bui also knows?”

The Taoist looked outside the temple.

“Master Bui knows about this earlier than you think.”

My mind is completely blank. Just how early is it? Was it before you married me? Or from the wedding night, when he absolutely refused to lift my wedding veil? The Taoist suddenly pointed his finger at the center of my forehead. A sharp pain immediately penetrated straight to the soul.

“Don't think about running away.”

“During these seven days, you can only follow your own body.”

“Wherever she goes, you go.”

I turned my head to look towards the inner palace. The maids serving "me" changed their clothes. She took off her plain clothes after getting married, and replaced them with the moon-white palace dress that Princess Truong Lac loved the most during her life. In the bronze mirror my face is reflected. She gently stroked her eyebrow bone with her hand and spoke softly.

“This face is still a bit worse than my previous face.”

The palace maids quickly knelt down.

"The princess's heavenly beauty, no one in the world can compare to it."

“That's right.”

My fingers tighten little by little. She took over my body. Yet you still criticize my face. Suddenly, footsteps were heard outside the palace gate. A ghost walked in to report.

"Informing the princess, old lady Bui presented a card to request an audience, saying she wanted to go to the palace to pay her respects."

We look towards "us". She raised her eyebrows slightly.

“Mrs. Bui?”

“That's right, it's Master Bui's mother.”

“I” slightly lowered my eyes and smiled.

“Tell her to come tomorrow.”

"By the way, tell her that Mrs. Bui Tham Dien had an acute illness last night and passed away."

I rushed straight forward, shouting hoarsely.

“I'm not dead yet!”

But no one turned to look back. Only she, through the bronze mirror, looked in my direction, the corners of her lips slowly curling up into a smile. Early the next morning, when it was not yet dawn, the palace was filled with mourning white lanterns. Not because of me. It's because of "Mrs. Bui Tham Dien". The news of my death was brought to Bui Palace by an inner servant. He informed me that after I entered the palace last night, I suddenly became acutely ill, and because I could not be cured, I passed away. The Emperor remembered the old kindness of Deputy Tham Thai and specially gave him a thin coffin, allowing the Bui family to take the body back for burial. Thin coffin. I stood under the porch of the main hall, heard those two words, and suddenly felt helpless equally ridiculous. My body is currently sitting in the Noan Pavilion, slowly drinking bird's nest spoonful by spoonful. The palace maids knelt down on the ground, calling her Princess Truong Lac in unison. As for Tham Dien... He only deserves a thin coffin. In the afternoon, Mrs. Bui entered the palace. She was wearing a dark blue dress, with a white jade hairpin in her hair, and her face was not at all sad. As soon as she entered the door, she knelt down.

“My father pays his respects to Princess Truong Le.”

I looked at her. That's the person I've always called mother for the past three years. When I fell ill, she said that the Bui family would not raise a weak daughter-in-law and pretended to be president. When I was coldly treated by Bui Nghien, she said that a woman who can keep her room and endure loneliness is the duty of a wife. When my mother's family was in decline, she said that I was able to marry into Bui Palace because my ancestors' graves were filled with green smoke, a blessing that only comes in generations. Now, the one kneeling faster than anyone was her.

“I” sat in the chair position, lazily lifting my hand.

“Stand up.”

Mrs. Bui stood up, her eyes glanced at her face, then immediately lowered her head. That face is mine. But she didn't dare call me Tham Dien.

“I heard that Tham Thi passed away?”

“I” asked very softly.

Mrs. Bui immediately sighed.

“It has an unfortunate fate.”

“Before I die, I can still visit the palace once, which is also considered my blessing.”

I stood right in front of her, looking intently at her mouth. Again, two words of blessing. They killed me, calling it a blessing.